Canadian Heritage committee  It's a step in the right direction, but I think they're measuring the wrong things. One of the most fundamental measures is performance in delivering a share of viewing of Canadian programs, in particular a share of viewing of original programs. One of the paradoxes of our very carefully created broadcasting system is that we have no system to follow original production or how much new creativity is being inserted into the broadcasting system.

Canadian Heritage committee  Mr. Hill.

Canadian Heritage committee  I believe that reporters and journalists should assess their current press council system. The Canadian Broadcast Standards Council and the regional press councils are not well enough known to Canadians. I think that the manner in which they make their deliberations is hidden and not particularly well communicated to citizens, and that we need a more integrated, rational, and accountable system.

Canadian Heritage committee  We were writing the final chapter of the report and the recommendation about the time the referendum was held. We released the report in January; I believe the referendum was in November. In the report, we made the recommendation to close down Ottawa and move the CBC to Montreal.

Canadian Heritage committee  Let me state that I believe that editorial opinion of some of the elite press in Quebec was unanimous that the CBC was biased at the time. Internal studies were conducted, which were rigorous, and found that on balance Quebeckers themselves felt the CBC had done not a bad job, but that is not a good enough standard.

Canadian Heritage committee  I think it's a very exciting question, actually. I think the CBC is already experimenting somewhat in this regard. It always invites comments from its listeners and posts them on the web. It has a minimal policy of editorial interference with those posted comments. The problem is that they're not then interactive in a fundamental way.

Canadian Heritage committee  Yes, I have Ms. Fry. I've tried to make it available in the form I presented today. Furthermore, I've undertaken to provide footnoted, appropriately cited comments later.

Canadian Heritage committee  Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman and honourable members of the committee. I also bring regrets. My colleague Dr. Druick is quite ill today and unable to be here. I'm speaking to you as an associate professor of communication from Simon Fraser University, and I have the remarkable distinction of having served as a member of the mandate review committee with Mr.